Saturday Market opens with good crowds

Mersades Lodge is a struggling Montana State University-Northern student looking for a way to pay for textbooks.

In crocheting, she thinks she’s found her answer.

She crochets everything from elephants to potholders to scarves.

And she puts them up for sale at the Havre Area Chamber of Commerce-sponsored Saturday Market at Town Square.

Saturday was the first day of the season, and although it was a holiday weekend and many people were out of town, things went pretty well, Lodge said.

For the first day of the season, it has been really good, she said, as the crowds began to disperse at the end of the market.

The animals sold especially well, she said.

She enjoys her hobby-turned part-time job, and loves talking to people about it.

“It’s fun ... it keeps me busy,” she said.

Richië Wilson also had a successful first day, especially given the fact that it’s still early for the vendors who sell vegetables.

“Considering this is the first day of the market, things went really well, she said.

She sells beads and other items made out of recyclable materials.

Old catalogues, magazines, paperback novels and fliers are converted into jewelry and placeholders.

People enjoy hearing how she goes through the process of making scrap paper into beads, she said.

She also offers tote bags made from recycled plastic grocery bags, which have been popular.

“Some people use them to carry their groceries in,” she said.

Next, she wants to make beads out of old bottle caps, she said.

She got into the craft many years ago when she used to play with her hair.

Her father suggested that she do something to keep her hands busy. She decided this was the thing to do.

At the booth sponsored by HRDC, Sarah Singer and Celina Cline were not selling things. They were giving out free lemonade and information about the services their agency sponsors in the community.

They used to use more paid advertising to get their message across, they explained, but with federal budget cuts, it made more sense to go out directly and meet people.

A lot of people don’t know what HRDC is or exactly what it does, Cline said. But many people can be helped by their services, she said.

Her program helps people looking for jobs, she said. They can help people obtain their GED, prepare resumes or even point them in the direction of buying a car.

Singer works in HRDC’s weatherization program.

The program does audits of home so people can see what they can do to conserve energy, especially in the cold months. They offer a variety of other services.

They will be at the market every other week, letting people know what HRDC does. And they will be giving out free lemonade.